Current Turmoil’s of Middle East Part II

Current Turmoil’s of Middle East

Part II

In late April 2014 one of the prominent international news items was the USA refusal to grant visa to Hamid Abdutalebi, a senior political advisor to President Hassan Rouhani.   Mr Abdultalebi was to be Iran’s newly appointed permanent United Nation representative.  Whilst it is true that the United Nation building is in New York on US soil two questions needs to be addressed.  He first of these is what legal right or rights does the US relies upon for such a refusal?  The second question is the scope and width of the US’ alleged right to setting dangerous and politically based precedent that affects  sovereign countries nominated representatives to set foot in the US and the UN?  

The stated reason for the US’ action is Mr Abdultalebi’ alleged involvement in the student storming of the US Iranian embassy in Tehran in 1979 after Ayatollah Khomeini returned to Iran and took power in 1979.  The hostages were held for 444 days and were released immediately after Ronald Regan was elected as President and took office in 1980.  Mr Abdultalebi’ reply to the allegation is that he was acted as interpreter to the students on couple of occasions.  The US posted a picture showing Mr Abdultalebi in 1979 outside the US Tehran embassy.

In the last blog on the topic (Part I) I made the point that the Iranian still holds significant grudges and anxiety about the CIA role and involvement in the coup that toppled prime Minister Muhammad Massadegh in 1953.  Those grudges came into open in the storming of the US Tehran embassy.  The reality is that the so called ‘students’ who stormed the embassy were seasoned Iranian secret agents.  They grilled the embassy staff about secretive operations and accused them of being spies.  The Iranian interrogators wasted no time reminding the staff of the US involvement in the coup that toppled Muhammad Massadegh in 1953 and installed the Shah.  The US was helpless and saw this as humiliation that became exceedingly more bitter by failed attempted rescue mission when two helicopters crashed head on in the desert killing and injuring some 15 commandos.  Political observers saw this botched rescue mission as the reason for President Jimmy Carter loss to Ronald Regan.

How can the US legally justify refusing Mr Abdultalebi visa? A rushed Bill that was passed by Congress that would bar anyone from entering the US as a member country representative to the UN was presented to President Obama to sing and became a law.  President Obama did sign the Bill.  The relevant section of the Bill that will bar Mr Abdultalebi setting foot on US soil is aimed at barring anyone who had engaged in espionage or terrorist activities and still pose a threat to national security from entering US.  No prizes to those guessing who decides this threat to US.

US needs to forget and perhaps forgive the 1979 storming of its Iranian Embassy and Iran needs to forget and forgive the US role in the toppling of Muhammad Massadegh painful as this may be to both countries.  Beside this still existing angst there is nothing preventing normal and healthy respectful diplomatic relationship between the two countries.  The alternative is for a move to relocate the UN to another country perhaps in the Middle East!

Current Turmoil’s of Middle East

Current Turmoil’s of Middle East

Part I

In this blog am putting forward the proposition that substantial, if not all the turmoil which the Arab Middle East had painfully experienced, and continues to experience especially over the last two decades including the recent so called Arab Spring, that is still causing running battles and wars especially in Egypt, Iraq, and disastrous war in Syria could be substantially traced back to the overthrow of Muhammad Massadegh, Prime Minister of Iran in 1953.  One may well say that am stretching longbow and credulity to the limit.  However, discerning students of history who follow events and look for immediate and simmering causes may well agree with me.

In an earlier blog headed: ‘Drawing Lines in the Sand’ I made the point that the Versailles Treaty signed after the First World War (WW1) that let the victorious powers, Britain and France, get away with drawing random lines in the sand and making hidden and secret promises is/are the real and continuing cause/causes of the ills currently witnessed in  the Middle East.   My proposition is that the toppling of Muhammad Massadegh in 1953 by the joint operation of British and American intelligence spy networks unleashed chain of events that led to the dictatorial rule of the Shah until his toppling in 1979 by the Imam Ayatollah Ruhallah Khomeini.  The West’ reaction to this development was to strengthening Saddam Hussein in neighbouring Iraq and the immediate outbreak of hostilities that led to the Iran-Iraq war of 1980.  Despite initial Iraqi success by 1983 the tide of war was turning in Iran’s favour.  However, a final peace agreement was not signed between the two countries until 1988. 

Assured that USA would not interfere or be indifferent if Saddam were to redraw and correct one of the lines in the sand drawn by Britain in 1918 separating Iraq’s nineteenth (19^th) province as Kuwait and installing the Sabah Family which had been the dominant Bedawen tribe since 1756 as its rulers.  A year or so after signing peace treaty with Iran Saddam sent his troops to occupy Kuwait and claiming it as the nineteenth province of Iraq.  Despite assurances of indifference the mighty USA had a change of heart and launched what was to become the catastrophic First Gulf War in 1991.  American war machinery mercilessly savaged Iraqi troops, tanks brigades and civilians even after surrendering.  They clearly meant and lived up to the saying: ‘take no prisoners’. That war savagery was followed by crippling sanctions and restrictions causing severe hardship to the Iraqi population including the death of hundreds of thousands of children from malnutrition and at the same time clipping Saddam’s wings.  George Bush, the father, was the President of the USA at the time.  The USA was still and remains to this day planet earth’ sole remaining Superpower.

The 9/11 attack on the Twin Towers in 1981 saw the incumbent President, George Bush (Junior), the son, label Iran, Iraq, and Afghanistan as the Axis of Evil.  Within matter of months of the attack relentless bombing of Kabul commenced followed by invasion and war that is still raging some 13 years later and saw significant military contribution from many European countries including sizeable contribution from Canada and Australia.  Although the purported mastermind, Usama bin Laden, was killed in 2011, the Taliban are as strong, if not stronger than they ever were prior to 1981.

    

Despite the irrefutable and credible evidence of Iraq not possessing Weapon of Mass Destruction (WMD) the son’s penchant for war was unstoppable. In March 2003 American warplanes bombarded Baghdad with relentless ferocity. Within matter of weeks Saddam Hussein and his government were toppled and went into hiding.  Saddam was captured in late 2003 and three years later found guilty of Crimes against Humanity and hanged. 

The elimination of Saddam Hussein created massive power vacuum in Iraq and saw the rise of fundamentalist jihadist groups throughout the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent, and Africa. This rise changed the landscape of security alertness throughout the world and made the Mighty USA more vulnerable to insidious external and internal terrorist attacks many folds to its pre Twin Tower vulnerability.

The savagery and brutality of the current war in Syria, the continuing slaughter and daily car bombing in Iraq, the turmoil in Yemen, the aftermath of the toppling of Muammar al-Gaddafi in Libya, and the unrest in Egypt are all arguably directly attributable to the fall of Saddam Hussein and indirectly to the toppling of Muhammad Massadegh in 1953. 

It is my opinion that if the intelligence services of Brittan and the USA had visionary and learned men who understood the cultural and real history of the Middle East the destiny of Iran would have been entirely different.  It would not be in the least farfetched to say Iran today would have arguably been a beacon of rich cultural democracy setting examples for modern day democracies to emulate including that of USA, Britain,  Western Europe and infectiously the rest of the Middle East.

As far as Israel is concerned the Jews will never forget that it was King Cyrus who allowed those willing to go back to the Holy Land to do so.  Significant number of Jews remained in Iran.  They did in big numbers and build the Second Temple which the Roman destroyed in 70 AD.

In the next blog (Part II) I will look at the relationship between Iran and USA and how this relationship can be mended and solidified if visionary learned men from both sides look at the facts to do with the years 1953 and 1979 and the stigma that still simmers. It is in the long term interest of both countries to bury the hatchet.

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